A Matter of Timing
by MaliciousContent
Summary: Rose Quartz meets Azurite a small gem who is left without a family because of a battle between Homeworld and the Earth. (This is before she became a Crystal Gem)


A loud crying was overheard. The big pink haired gem turned around ruthlessly. _Where is it coming from,_ she thought to herself. She followed the crying with her sword drawn to a corner. It persisted and she quickly charged around the corner. The pink gem then looked in surprise, a little girl was in the sand surrounded by broken gem shards. Tears rolled down her face but she stopped when she saw the pink gem. She quickly lifted up a body next to her with a lot of effort and sprinted off. The pink haired gem tracked the small child's footsteps, _Is she human or gem?_ When the girl was corned with nowhere left to go, the big gem stood in front of her. "What do you have there in your arms?" asked the gem in a haughty tone.

"I can't tell you because you are evil!" the girl replied.

The pink gem was slightly put off at this answer, but she calmly repeated the question. The girl was calming down as she sensed the threat was still there but decreasing. She lied and said, "My dad was protecting me but he only destroyed one gem… The rest hurt him very bad, he is sleeping right now."

"I bet he is just exhausted from fighting my fellow Homeworld gems. He will awaken soon," the pink gem smiled becoming desperate to believe her words, "Why don't we get you somewhere safe?"

"Okay," the girl said trustingly.

The pink gem could not hold in her words when she saw the girl slowly adjust her father, "I don't think he is with us anymore, why don't we let him rest in the ground. He would be happier to know that you are safe from harm."

"No! He is still here… See? He just has his eyes closed for a nap," said the little girl with tears welling in her eyes.

"We need to get out of here child," the pink gem said as she heard a crash. Homeworld was here to supply back up. "Please? You are the first creature I have ever talked to that was not my leader and I am interested in you."

The girl looked to the ground watching it get darker with her tears. She started digging a hole for her dad. The pink gem helped her dig too and then they placed the body into their hole. They covered it up together and put a beautiful rock on top of it. The pink gem realized all the damage that the girl had received from the battle when she looked at her tattered and blood stained clothing. "Does it hurt?"

"No…maybe it does… but I can deal with it."

"How old are you even?"  
"I am 6 years old…" the girl said.

"What is your name?"

"My name is Azurite," the girl replied trying to hold back the later inevitable sobs that were already starting to make her shoulders wobble.

"Why are you sobbing? What is wrong?" the gem demanded.

"I don't know… You are the first person who has been nice to me. My dad, he had something wrong with him. He got very sick and started to get angry at the littlest things. Then some gems came to get rid of us and my dad said that I should not exist as I ruined his entire life. He sent me to go kill the gems that attacked us… He didn't even help me when I got hurt. I am sure he just loved mom too much, I have her gem but he must hate me because she died to help me survive," Azurite began to tear up, "What is your name?"

"Mine? Oh mine is Rose Quartz," the pink gem replied, "I am new to the Homeworld army but I don't quite get what they are fighting for. I think we need to get moving… I had hardly noticed all the destruction that we were causing to this precious planet until I experienced it myself, but I am leaving Homeworld to stay here."

"Do you know what I am? I don't have a gem form like the other gems and I look human but my dad would never call me his daughter. I can't ever seem to fit in with anyone. I have my mom's gem on my forehead and I cover it with my hair but the kids at school still bully me… They call me a halfling."

"You are a different kind of person, half gem and half human, you are special."

"Oh," Azurite responded slightly tipping over.

Azurite passed out from exhaustion and Rose picked her up in her strong arms after sheathing her sword. She walked into the sunset until she could not hear the screams and shouts of the war. They were at the top of a beautiful mountain with a light breeze caressing the grass creating waves of light green. Rose washed off all the injuries as the sun gleamed its last glow and sank into the water of the horizon, melting away all the troubles. Rose lay Azurite down on the ground and looked for firewood and big leaves for shelter. _I wonder how long this will last… Homeworld will find us; it is just a question of when._

She looked over at the small gem and was already falling in love with Azurite, her sweet face enjoying her long awaited rest. Rose lay next to her and put her arm around the small body. She drifted off to sleep. And for the first time, she felt relaxed and safe from harm.

Azurite woke up when the sun was rising, lighting up the valley. She rolled over and found that Rose was nowhere to be found. The small gem looked around for her under rocks and around trees, calling: "Rose! Where are you? Rose?"

She ran limping up the mountain and heard a beautiful voice serenading the valley. Azurite kept running and panting till she got to the top and stared at the heavenly figure of Rose. The pink gem became quiet, turned around and after walking to her, gave the small gem a hug. "I thought you left me," Azurite spoke tediously.

"Why would I do that? You are all that I have right now," Rose replied with a calm and docile voice.

Azurite nodded and said she was hungry but they didn't have food. Rose asked what being hungry was but Azurite had difficulty describing it. She showed Rose some berries and told her to eat them, Rose did so but could not swallow. Azurite ate a couple of handfuls until she was full and told Rose that it was okay since gems did not ever eat food. Rose swallowed them but she did not want anymore of that strange food. She smiled and Azurite wiped her mouth with her tattered shirt mesmerized by Rose's beauty. They travelled together for weeks, which turned into months. They slept together, ate together as Rose was mastering eating, Azurite absolutely loved Rose and her gorgeous aura. She took out a sword and cut the hair around Azurite's gem when they stopped at a quiet creek. "I wonder what my mom was like," Azurite thought out loud as she stared into her and Rose's reflection.

"She must have been wonderful and kind enough to have you," replied Rose.

One day when the leaves were colored in oranges, yellows, and browns, Azurite fell and cut her leg on a poisonous spiked flower. She didn't tell Rose for a month but every day the pain would get worse. Azurite lost her temper often and realized that this type of flower was most likely what her dad had gotten cut on. Rose always forgave her but she could never forgive herself. One morning she woke up foaming at the mouth. Rose had no idea what to do so she just held her tight until she stopped convulsing. Azurite told her the truth and Rose smacked her across the face, "Don't you know that I care about you?! Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"Because there is nothing you can do," Azurite said with tears streaming down her face, "this is what killed my dad… I didn't want you to be worried and reject me."

Rose held onto Azurite for a few minutes until she passed out. A couple days later, Rose awoke to hearing her vomit blood everywhere. She held tight onto her until she stopped rapidly breathing. Rose laid her on the ground and stroked her hair. Azurite was panting slowly, "I love you Rose, I don't want to die yet, I want to stay with you."

At that moment, the pink gem heard a gem ship flying above them. She saw the light fading away in Azurite's eyes and she started to cry, her tears glowing when they hit Azurite's chest. The ship landed blowing trees and rocks away. Azurite started breathing again and her eyes opened wide when she realized that she was dead but now alive. Rose was confounded by her behavior but helped lift her up. Three gems from the ship got out and one said, "Give us the mutant and you can go back to your duties Rose Quartz facet 6 cut 12."

"No, I am never going to give her up to the likes of you!" Rose Quartz yelled back powerfully.

The gems then proceeded to attack her. She destroyed two of the gems but the third was persistent and took another swipe at Rose bowling her over. The other gems were starting to come back but she somehow crushed them before they could. Azurite watched her fearless leader protecting her and wanted to fight also. The third gem stung Rose with a stun gun and shoved its foot into her head, smashing it into the ground. "You had better come with me or your friend is dead," it said tersely to the small gem.

Rose was shaking her head, trying to stop the inevitable, Azurite getting shipped off to the labor mines. Azurite walked steadily past the third gem and into the ship, watching her leader carefully. The third gem lifted its foot off of Rose Quartz and trotted gleefully into the ship with a huge smile, not even acknowledging its destroyed partners. The ship blasted off into space and left Rose laying on the ground crying, she couldn't even move because of the stun gun. She was deeply saddened and wanted to do all she could to fight Homeworld.

Years later, Rose Quartz became a leader of the gem/human rebellion against the gems of Homeworld, protecting Earth and beings that existed on it. Homeworld came back often to retrieve her but she fought back each time getting stronger and stronger. She met many gems and important people but never could quite forget her friend. The fall leaves always reminded her of the time that she discovered how powerful friendship is. She learned to move on and accept that her friend was gone somewhere she could not get to.


End file.
